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WATCH THIS SPACE Smartwatches are the perfect fitness partner, and they’ve come a long way over the last five years. Instead of just monitoring your heart rate, smartwatches can keep an eye on a whole range of body metrics, sending it all to connected smartphone apps to help you track your fitness progress, alert you if anything’s wrong, and provide quick access to emergency

LET’S GET PHYSICAL

services in seconds if needed. Of course, they’ll also keep track of your daily tasks and appointments because the latest fitness watches are also stylish, capable and powerful mini wrist computers.

With summer in full swing and the long sunny days inviting everyone to get outside and rediscover the great outdoors, this season’s looking like being a massive one for personal fitness and well-being. It’s the perfect time to soak up an endless supply of fresh air, warm sun and new places. Shake off the cobwebs and embrace the pure fun of being out in the world again!

JB’s Top Tips

Pick a smart watch that works well with your existing smartphone – check your phone’s app store to make sure there’s app support before you buy.

LISTEN UP, BUD! If you’re heading out to do some running, jogging or just walking the dog, you’ll probably have discovered the hassle with regular earbuds and over-ear headphones – they won’t stay in (or on) your ears when you’re exercising, and sound quality can vary wildly as they move about as you do. Some headphones and earbuds were just made to be used when you’re not being active – but there’s a whole range of them that are custom-designed to be the perfect outdoors companions for music, podcasts or phone calls. Regardless of whether you’re an earbuds of over-ear headphones person, if they’re designed for active use they should stay put when you’re running, and stay working if you sweat.

HEAR THE WORLD Not everyone is keen to block out the outdoor world’s sounds completely – and for the dedicated fitness fanatic it can be a real problem to not hear what’s going on in the world around you. Whether it’s cars and other traffic, people talking to you or keeping an ear on the safety sounds of things like pedestrian crossings, some people would rather not shut out the world while they’re out exercising in it – but want to enjoy quality audio as well. Again, technology comes to the rescue, with clever devices that deliver music while keeping outside sounds audible.

JB’s Top Tips

With most earbuds, extended battery life comes via a charging case – so check the run time outside the case if you’re planning on using them for a very long run or ride

What to Buy:

JLab JBuds Air Sport True Wireless In-Ear Headphones 34 hours of play time with the included charging case – and a movie mode for lag-free audio when you get home. $149

JBL Under Armour Flash-X True Wireless In-Ear Headphones IPX7 sweat and waterproof, with extended bass response and a remarkable 50 hours of battery life. $279 Sony WF-SP800N Truly Wireless Sports Headphones Noise cancelling, powerful bass, IP55 dust and water resistance and all-day battery life. $249

Bose Sports True Wireless Earbuds The big Bose lifelike sound from tiny, comfortable and exercise-ready earbuds that can also handle phone calls with ease. $299

Beats Powerbeats Pro Totally Wireless Earphones Powered by Apple’s H1 headphone chip, with optical and motion sensors to automatically play music when you wear them. $349

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